Liberal Arts at Carroll

Faculty member in a gray vest and fun yellow bowtie lecturing in front of a small group of students

Where the liberal arts meet career preparation

Carroll College offers an education that values an integrated and inclusive view of the person.  Combining the needs of today’s students with the deeply rooted intellectual values of Catholic tradition, Carroll students benefit from a holistic broad based liberal arts education.  They become computer programmers with excellent written and verbal communication skills. They become healthcare providers with cultural and global awareness that bring the added perspective of the human condition enhancing the care they deliver. They become business leaders with a strong foundation in ethical reasoning and theological literacy.

The 21st-century workforce requires professionals who have expertise in their chosen field, broad-based knowledge across multiple disciplines, a lifelong love of learning and a commitment of service to others

That’s what Carroll’s liberal arts education is all about. Today, opportunities are realized, and challenges are overcome by bringing together diverse professional and personal perspectives. Our core curriculum prepares you to succeed in that world—where the only constant is change, and where your ability to expand your intellectual, personal, and spiritual pursuits will serve you for life. 

The Core Curriculum

The Core Curriculum is the foundation of Carroll’s Catholic liberal arts education. It will engage you in a broad spectrum of quantitative, scientific, aesthetic, and humanities disciplines. By drawing connections between these disciplines, the Core strengthens your ability to analyze topics from multiple perspectives and make sound, critical, creative judgments. You’ll learn how to apply the knowledge you’ve gained to make ethical decisions and pursue virtue in your professional and personal life. 

The Core Curriculum gives Carroll graduates a strong foundation in: 

  • Critical and integrative thinking 
  • Quantitative and scientific analysis 
  • Oral and written communication 
  • Theological literacy 
  • Ethical reasoning
  • Intercultural and global understanding

It’s technology married with liberal arts, married with the humanities, that yields the results that make our heart sing.

Steve Jobs

  • Student in South Africa exclaiming in joy as a large bird sits on her arm

    Liberal arts in the world

    Connecting the Core and Carroll’s liberal arts to the world beyond campus is the Sed Vitae experience, a requirement for all students. It’s at the heart of our commitment to prepare you non-scholae, sed vitae—“not for school, but for life.”

    Sed Vitae Experience
  • Three students engaged in discussion at a computer

    Liberal arts and the great books

    The Honors Scholars Program, a selective academic offering, approaches the liberal arts through the study of the great books of world literature, with a focus on knowledge, charity, and the humanities. 

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  • Student in an applied learning setting where she is outdoors observing bio samples in a microscope

    Liberal arts applied

    Carroll offers hands-on opportunities to take what students learn in the classroom and apply it to their career goals.

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Diverse group of four students smiling in front of Madison River

Liberal arts and diverse perspectives

Learning with and from people with different backgrounds and experiences enriches the Carroll liberal arts experience.

Explore Carroll's academic programs

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